“Everything but country and rap” is a social media trope that dates back to the halcyon days of social media — before the dark times. More than anything, the boilerplate phrase is used to indicate to your friends that your music tastes are “legit” (i.e. you own a pre-stressed Doors shirt).

Within recent years, the “poptimist” philosophy, which postulates that overtly commercial music has just as much intrinsic merit as its so-called “authentic” counterparts like rock, punk and folk, has influenced virtually every sector of music fandom and criticism. Just look at literally any 2016 best-of list from a credible outlet; a producer-driven artist like Beyoncé beating out auteurs such as David Bowie and Radiohead is, among other things, a visible signal that we’ve conquered our anti-pop biases.

But what about commercial country?

Hip-hop has benefitted greatly from the critical acceptance of pop music, and that could be because hip-hop has officially supplanted rock as “the peoples’ music.” (At least in the mainstream.) If you don’t accept it, you look old, and the threat of looking old is a modern music writer’s personal kryptonite. Popular country, however, is still largely regarded as a second-rate style of pop music by blogosphere gatekeepers. There are exceptions to this — most notably, Taylor Swift, who seamlessly made the transition from country superstar to pop superstar with Red and 1989 (the current critical perception of Swift — scandals notwithstanding — has probably also been informed by her acceptance from connoisseurs of taste like Ryan Adams). 

But why do many listeners still reflexively dismiss the bulk of pop country as inconsequential? It could be because the genre typifies the oft-imperceptible line separating earnestness from stupidity. Country operates in two extremes: it simultaneously takes itself way too seriously and relishes in its own dumbness. The benchmarks for great country are artists like Hank Williams (the first), Patsy Cline and Gram Parsons — singers who were able to transfigure their turmoil into clever and catchy parlor romps.

It could also be because modern country stars are, for the most part, interchangeable caricatures:  living, singing, guitar-slinging paragons of hillbilly tradition that much of the world has a hard time extricating from political misjudgment and barroom bellicosity. Most country music doesn’t claim to stand for anything, and that’s a tough pill to swallow for a generation of music fans who have grown increasingly sensitive to the perceived social implications of taste.

With all that being said, there are modern pop country artists who still make terrific music — assuming that music is still, you know, the point of all this. Below are 5 that can sway even the largest hater of the genre.

Dierks Bentley

Dierks Bentley’s 2014 single “Drunk on a Plane” is just the right mix of maudlin self-pity and classic country smarminess. In its rather overwrought premise, the song’s narrator is ditched at the altar and forced to travel to Mexico alone when he can’t get a refund for honeymoon airfare. He then proceeds to get, well, “drunk on a plane,” making the most of a dismal situation. But the cliched celebration of substance abuse is underpinned by bulletproof hooks and lyrics that oscillate between crass and crafty (“I feel like the plastic groom alone there at the top of the cake…so hey, I’m getting drunk a plane.”) Bentley’s most recent full-length, 2016’s Black, is a lite-concept album chronicling the singer’s own relationships. Not every moment is a home run, but songs like “I’ll Be The Moon” and closer “Can’t Be Replaced” showcase the notorious tomcat’s more vulnerable side.